Beauty and the Beast Modern Version
by LoveGarden22
Summary: The Beauty and the Beast story line put in a modern setting.
1. Prologue

Prologue

Once upon a time, in a faraway land, a young lad lived in a spacious mansion, over the hills and mountains, and deep within the woods. Although he had everything his heart desired, and everything he had ever asked for in life the boy was spoiled, selfish, and unkind. But then, one winter's night, an old woman came to the mansion.

The boy had recently lost his parents, and other than the servants that looked after him he had never seen anyone else near his home before. He was confused by her presence and found her image unnerving. The boy was dreadfully honest and cared little for others feelings. He was very rich, and everyone he had ever known had worked for him, so they had never talked back to his harsh words and never asked him to do anything for anyone else.

The young boy was frustrated that he had to answer the door, but all of his servants somehow slept through the racket. He thought of waking them to answer the door, but he didn't want to waste his time going down to the servants' quarters. He just wanted the person knocking to go away and leave him alone.

So he answered the door. He wasn't pleased to see the old woman. He was less pleased that she dared come to his home when she looked as horrid as she did.

"What do you want?" he asked aggravated,

"Please, may I come in? My car broke down on the mountain road, I saw your house and I was wondering if I could spend the night. Or possibly, at least use your phone to call a tow truck. I'm afraid if I stay out in this storm I am sure to perish."

"Why should I let you do that?" he asked, "What can I gain from letting you in? You're more likely to harm than help me if you entered my home. You're a stranger! Why should I trust you?" He snapped, the old woman was starting to beg.

"Please sir, I mean you no harm! I am old and weak and defenceless! You could easily over power me yourself, let alone with your many servants! I don't ask for charity, I'll give you this rose. Please let me in, or else, I'll surely die." She argued,

He sneered at the gift, "A rose? That's your pathetic excuse for payment? Get out of my sight, you ugly old woman!" he shouted. The old woman stepped back in shock, but then composed herself and responded,

"Please reconsider, young man. You might be surprised, there is always more to a person than what meets the eye." She told him offering her rose once more. He was very annoyed now, and wondered why the woman was still there.

"I told you to go away!" he shouted at her, "You're ugly, you'll always be ugly, and nothing else matters to me than your disappearance from my life! Now get lost!"

He was about to slam the door on her when suddenly she was surrounded by a bright light. He threw back the door and gazed upon what was once an old woman, in her place stood a beautiful woman. The woman was tall and floated in the air in a ball of light. Her hair was now long and blew in the wind. She wore a long gown that blew in the wind as well. Her eyes shone with bright light as she gazed down upon him. In her hand, she held the rose she had offered.

"I tried to warn you, to give you a second chance..." she told him a silky voice that echoed through the wind.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know..." he started to say,

"Yet you turned me away. I was helpless, and I would've died, but you turned me away anyway because...you didn't like me, or how I looked."

"You shouldn't have lied!" He argued, "I would've let you in if-"

"-If I was beautiful?" She finished, "That shouldn't have made a difference." She told him, the boy fell to his knees and started to beg.

"Please, I'm sorry. I've learned my lesson, I swear!" he told her,

"You will..." she said, and suddenly he started to change. Fur sprouted all over his body, his face elongated into a snout, his teeth grew into fangs, and horns grew out of his head.

"You will know what it's like to be judged on appearance. You must change your personality. You must become someone who can be loved despite their appearance, since you no longer have that to assist you. Before you ask, it must be someone who DOES NOT WORK FOR YOU!"

"What are you...saying?" he asked as he body contorted,

"I place a curse on you... and all of your servants for making you who you are. Yet there is a way to break this spell. You may keep my rose, for it will show you your time. If you can learn to love someone and earn their love in return before the last petal falls, then the spell will be broken. If not, you will be doomed to remain a beast for all time. I also leave you this mirror. It should help you in your search."

She told him flatly, and with that, she vanished with little trace that she was ever there. The only difference was that now a beast stood where a boy once stood, and there was a mirror and a rose lying in the snow. The beast gently picked up the rose and the mirror, and almost dropped them upon seeing who he was now. He retreated back inside and locked the door. He bolted up all the windows, and smashed all the mirrors.

He first thought of cheating. That sorceress wouldn't know if a servant loved him, would she. Then, he was shocked to find that now he was alone. In the servants' beds, were material objects. In the kitchen there was cookware where people once stood. He was now truly alone.

He placed the rose in a bell jar in his room, where it hovered, suspended by magic. He placed the magic mirror nearby, so he could keep all the magical items in the same place.

The next day he was pleased to discover that his servants were still alive, but as objects. He feared that if he did not break the spell they too would remain that way forever. The servants were all terrified and confused when they came upon their new forms. They asked the boy to explain,

"She's making sure I don't cheat." He told them, to which he had to explain further. After explaining things to the servants he went through his photo album. He looked at the photos of him when he was younger, of whom he used to be. In all of the photos he was human, but he wasn't smiling. It reminded him of how he got cursed in the first place. He threw all of the photos in his fireplace. He didn't want a reminder of who he was.

The years passed, and the young boy grew into a young man, who saw himself as a young monster. He lived in the woods and hunted for his food. He looked like a monster, and acted like a monster. At first he tried to find love, but as much as he looked, he couldn't bring himself to leave and face the shame that the sorceress promised him.

After awhile, he knew it was hopeless. It was best to accept his new life. He fell into despair and lost all hope of ever regaining who he was. He knew that if he was in their position, he wouldn't feel the same. He knew no one could ever love him. No one could ever love a beast.


	2. Little Town

Little Town

Meanwhile, in a nearby town, there lived a girl who was now in her late teens. She was a beautiful girl, but she was also smart, and that confused many people of her small minded town. She liked to read and keep to herself and people thought she was rather strange for doing so.

Her town realized that a girl could be smart, but if she was they didn't expect her to be beautiful as well. In that town it was one or another, you either focus on looks, or books, you couldn't have both. The main thing that worried them was that of her loner status. They were used to girls who talked a lot with their friends and spending time out on the town instead of girls who had preferred to be home with their father.

Her family had moved to that town a few years ago, and ever since they had the town had been wary of the two of them. The father, Maurice, spent a lot of time travelling, since he was a technician and worked on building inventions in his spare time. They hardly saw him much at all. They mostly saw his daughter, Elle, as she walked to school and went shopping.

The girl dressed modestly, always dressing down and looking casual. Her most common outfit was some blue jeans and a long white tee shirt. She never wore any jewelry accept a wristwatch, and it was a modest blue one. She always wore her hair back in a ponytail to keep it out of her face when reading. She always wore her sneakers everywhere she went, and carried a brown handbag that usually held a couple books in it.

Elle didn't exactly enjoy her life in town too much. She found it dull and boring, doing the same routine day after day. That's why she enjoyed reading so much, to escape from her boring everyday life. Her town didn't agree however. They found it weird that she kept herself so isolated. Rumors went around town saying she had lost her grip on reality, others saying she had a troubled life at home. Elle tried to ignore them, but she couldn't help but thinking she really was odd.

She got the rhythm of her life down so well, she sung a little song everyday to herself on her way to school.

 _Little town, it's a quiet village..._

 _Everyday, like the one before..._

 _Little town, full of little people..._

 _Waking up to say..._

Right on queue a bunch of people passed by greeting her on the street.

"Good day!" they would say,

"Good day!" another would answer back,

Then it would start a chain, "Good day! Good day! Good day!"

Elle just rolled her eyes as she kept to her rhythm, predicting the events of the day as they happened.

 _Their goes the baker with his Tim's like always, the same old tarts and rolls to sell..._

 _Every morning just the same, since the morning that we came, to this poor provincial town—_

"Good morning, Elle!" said the Tim Horton's employee as he passed her on his way to work.

"Good morning, sir." She replied back politely,

"Where are you off to?" he asked, noticing she wasn't walking in the direction of the high school.

"Oh, to the library! I just finished the most wonderful story! It's a retelling of Jack and the beanstalk! Only this time, there's-" she started to say with enthusiasm, although he cut her off.

"That's nice." He said turning into the coffee shop, he shouted at his co-workers. "Mary, hurry up with those baguettes!" Elle realized he didn't really care and was just asking to be polite. So she rolled her eyes and continued on her way.

Meanwhile as Elle passed the townspeople they noticed her and they had some things to say themselves.

"Look there she goes!" said a woman,

"Oh, I see her. That girl is strange; there is no question about It." replied her friend sitting next to her.

"How so?" she asked,

"She's so dazed and distracted all the time, can't you tell?" her friend explained,

"Oh, now I see it."

Another woman she passed looked to her with concern,

"I worry about her. She's always off by herself and never a part of any crowd. She must be terribly lonely." She said to herself,

"It's because she's always off in la-la land." A man next to her said frankly, "If she would stop daydreaming so often then she might make some friends."

In that town there was no denying that Elle was a funny girl.

Elle passed more people in town and listened as they greeted each other.

A man drove past a woman and said good morning as she said good morning back and he asked her about her family. A salesman was about to make a pass at woman shopping with him. He asked said good day to her, and she simply asked him how his wife was. His wife was indeed right behind him and cuffed him upside the head for his foolishness. Another woman was buying eggs from some Mennonites, and another man was telling his wife that they could buy something for they didn't have the money.

Elle heard the same thing every day. She had everything they said memorized, and could guess everyone's next move. Something needed to happen, something different, something new and exciting like in her books. She didn't want to end up like the people in her town living the same day over and over again. She needed a change.

 _There must be more than this provincial life!_ She said exasperated, before turning and entering the town library.

"Elle!" the librarian said happily,

"Good morning!" she said equally joyful, "I've come to return the book I borrowed." She told him. The librarian was surprised; he had never known anyone to read as fast as Elle did.

"Finished already?" he asked,

"Oh I couldn't put it down." she explained, "Have you got anything new?" she asked excitedly.

The librarian chuckled, "Not since yesterday." He said since that was the last time she visited.

Elle smiled, "That's alright." She told him, she didn't mind reading things twice, "I'll...borrow...this one!" she said picking a book off the shelf.

The librarian was a little surprised she picked that one, "That one? But you've read it twice!" he reminded her,

"Well it's my favourite:" she told him, then went on to list the reasons, "Far off places, daring swordfights, magic spells, a prince in disguise!"

The old librarian smiled. Elle was his most frequent customer. He loved seeing the joy she felt from reading and wished others were as enthusiastic as her. He decided to do something nice for her in return.

"If you like it all that much, it's yours!" he told her. Elle was shocked by this announcement. Usually you had to buy old books from the library if you wanted them. To receive for free was not something that happened all to often.

"But sir?!" she asked astonished,

"I insist!" he told her, pushing the book into her hands.

"Why thank you, thank you very much!" she said giving him a big hug. Then she looked at her watch and noticed she was going to be late for school. So she hurried out the door and on her way.

As she rushed past the library, some construction workers watched her go past. They thought she was pretty but didn't bother to whistle at her. They knew they would be wasting their breath. With that book in her hand she was in another world. "Look, there she goes." One said,

"That girl is so peculiar." Said another,

"I wonder if she's feeling well?" asked another, but then they shrugged it off and continued to drink their coffee.

She passed another group of people that took her antics into account. "There she is again." They said, "With her dreamy far off look plastered on her face." Said some girls.

"Her nose is stuck in some book, same as always." Some guys added,

No one in town could figure her out. She was a puzzle that no one could solve.

There was one time Elle looked up from her book. Some dogs ran up next to her and nudged her leg. She looked down and told them about what she was reading, since no one else seemed to care.

"I'm at my favourite part." She told them, "It's where the girl meets prince charming, but she doesn't find out that it's him until all the way in chapter three!" Then the dogs saw their master chasing after them and ran on ahead of her to get away. She sighed; it was nice to have company...for a little while.

As she passed a salon a woman watched as she passed jealous of her appearance. "She's like the definition of beauty!" she told her stylist. "Just look at her, she's all curves." The stylist looked and didn't see what the woman saw. It wasn't like Elle was showing them off. He guessed the woman just saw what she wanted to. So, to cheer her up he told her,

"But behind that fair facade, I'm afraid she's rather odd. Very different from the rest of us." He said,

"I guess you're right. She's nothing like the rest of us. Her beauty is only skin deep. Nothing can remove how odd she is." She said,

Elle was very different than all of them indeed. However, Elle would never speak harshly of someone she hardly knew.

Meanwhile, on her way to school she passed the basketball courts. There was the star athlete of her school, Gordon, and his posse, including his number one sidekick/best friend, Lou.

"Wow you didn't miss a shot Gordon! You're the greatest player in the whole world." Lou told him, building his ego.

"I know." He said,

"No man alive stands a chance against you," He told him, before whispering, "and no girl for that matter."

"It's true, Louie," he said, "and I've got my sight set on that one." He said pointing to Elle as she passed.

"The technician's daughter!?" he asked with surprise, wondering why his friend would go after someone like her...someone so...odd?

"She's the one, the lucky girl who'll get to be my girlfriend!" he told him,

"But she's-" Lou tried to warn him,

"-the most beautiful girl in town!" Gordon interjected,

"I know, but-"

"That makes her the best! And don't I deserve the best?" he asked shooting a warning glare at him telling his friend to watch what he said next.

"Well of course, I mean you do, but I..." he mumbled trying to get the words off, but Gordon was done listening to him.

"Right from the moment when I met her-" he started to say,

"Met her?" Lou interjected, reminding him that he had never met her.

"Saw her!" he corrected, "I said to myself, 'She's gorgeous' and I started crushing on her. Here in town, she's the only one who's as attractive as I am. So we belong together, Lou!"

"What if she says, 'no'?" Lou asked him,

"Then I just have to woo her, it shouldn't be that hard. I mean, all the girls love me." He said.

Just to rest his case there were some girls watching him from the sidelines. They were the standard blonde beauty queens of their school and town. A lot of people considered them to be beautiful, but not as beautiful as Elle. Their problem was that they tried too hard, unlike Elle where it just came naturally.

"Look at him, isn't he dreamy?" said one,

"Oh he's so cute!" said another,

"Be still my heart, I'm hardly breathing!" said the last,

"He's just so tall..."

"Dark..."

"Strong..."

"And handsome..." they listed, before swooning as he flexed and charged off in Elle's direction.

Now they were in school, which was just like a miniature market place. The halls were swarming with people saying "Hello!" and "Good Morning," and "Good day" but they were also saying a bunch of other things as the teens filled the halls with the sounds of gossip an discussion about their classes and their weekends. Gordon tried pushing through the crowd of teens to get closer to Elle who was also pushing her way through way ahead of him.

 _There must be more than this provincial life,_ Elle said exasperated,

Gordon had stopped to talk to some of his many friends, "Just watch, Elle's going to be a part of my life." He told them. They looked down the hall to see if they could find her. "Look, there she goes!" they told him, and he charged off.

"There's a girl who's strange...but special." One guy said,

"She's very peculiar." Said another,

One shook his head, "It's a pity really, she doesn't quite fit in."

"But she is a funny girl." Another argued,

"A beauty, but a funny girl." Another agreed,

"Elle certainly is a funny girl." They all agreed. They all finished up their "good mornings", before heading to class.


	3. Maurice

Maurice

Elle spent the school day going through the same routine as usual. She went to all her classes and answered all the questions. The classes weren't hard for her, they were just routine. She usually finished with time to spare, so she could read her new book. She was especially good in English class. She was so immersed she didn't notice when everyone stared. They were still amazed with her brilliance and wondered how anyone could like a class so much.

Yet, by the end of the day, Elle just wanted to go home. She didn't love school, or love being out in town. She preferred to be at home with her father and a good book. The only thing she liked about school was the prospect of moving away to a bigger, better school.

However, that day she was going to be a bit delayed. She went to her locker same as always, packed up her bags, grabbed her books and got ready to leave. When she shut her locker door, there was Gordon standing there waiting for her.

"Hello, Gordon." Elle said walking away reading her new book.

"Hello, Elle." He said confidently as he started to follow her, Elle picked up the pace and hurried towards the door. She wasn't in the mood for conversation. Gordon on the other hand, was. However, he was becoming frustrated with her not paying attention to him. So he reached down and plucked the book out of her hands and held it out of her reach.

"Gordon, can I have my book back, please?" Elle asked feeling incredibly annoyed. Gordon flipped through her book to try and get a feel for what she was reading, yet it was incredibly hard to skim since the print was so small.

"How can you read something like this? There are no pictures!" he said frustrated, skipping over the illustrations.

"Well, some people use their imaginations." Elle told him trying to grab her book. Gordon, who was done with the book, threw it over his shoulder and into puddle of spilled juice on the floor.

"Elle, it's time to get your head out of the books and start paying attention to more important things..." Elle rushed to grab her book but Gordon stepped in front of her, "...like me." He said grinning confidently,

Elle reached around him with a look of annoyance and grabbed her book, drying it off with her shirt. "The whole town is talking about it!" he told her,

"It's not right for someone to read so much. Soon they lose their grip on reality and start going crazy. They get all these ideas and get confused about what's real and what's not." He told her,

"Gordon, you are quite the conspiracy theorist." Elle told him,

"Thank you." He said having no idea what she said, but assuming it meant absolute genius. He saw his chance and he put his arm around her and started walking her towards the school gymnasium.

"How about we go over to the school gym and take a look at my trophies?" he suggested to her, assuming she would love the opportunity to spend time with him and bask in his glory. Elle on the other hand wasn't too interested with sports, and knew that Gordon participated in every sport the school had to offer, so looking at his trophies would take awhile. She just wanted to go home.

"Maybe some other time." She told him as she squirmed out of his grip and turned rushing out the door. The popular girls were watching Gordon's interaction with her and were astonished with her behaviour.

"What's wrong with her?" said one,

"She's crazy!" insisted the other,

"He's gorgeous!" said the third, which made them all forget what they were talking about and continue to stare at him.

Gordon chased after Elle, determined not to give up so easily. They passed the basketball court and Gordon noticed his entourage waiting for him. Maybe it was possible for her to need a reminder of how great he was. Surely hanging out with his bros would make her see that.

"How about you stay and watch me shoot some hoops?" he suggested,

"I'm sorry Gordon, but I've really got to get home and help my father. He's working on something for a fair tomorrow, and this is the last chance he has to work on it before he leaves." Elle explained, but Gordon didn't really care.

Lou heard the statement about Maurice and burst into laughter, "That crazy old loon, he's going to need all the help he can get!" He cried, and he, Gordon, Tim, Dick, Stanley and all the other guys burst into laughter.

"Don't talk about my dad that way!" Elle shouted at them. She was trying to be polite, but this was crossing the line.

"Yeah, don't talk about her father that way!" Gordon said hoping to look good in front of Elle, "My father is not crazy! He's a genius!" She told them, and suddenly she got a call on her cell phone. She picked up the phone,

"Hello?" she said,

"Elle, where are you? I really need your help here at home!" Her father shouted through the other line with engines running in the background. Elle moved the phone away from her ear because it was so loud.

"Don't worry, Dad. I'm on my way home right now. I'll be there-" she started to say, but suddenly there was a loud "BOOM" on the other end and the line went dead. Elle hung up the phone in a panic and started to run home. As she ran she could hear Gordon and the other boys laughing in the distance.

As soon as Elle got home she saw smoke coming from the backyard. She rushed back to see that it was coming from her father's shed. She opened the shed and looked inside. "Dad!? Dad, where are you? Are you alright?!" she shouted and she heard him coughing through the smoke. She rushed over to him and helped him up. Now that she had grown she was taller than her father.

Maurice, commonly known as Moe by the townsfolk was indeed getting older. He stood to be 5'2", and had patches of grey hair on his head which was thinning. He was a bit pudgy around the waist line due to his old age. Yet despite what others in town believed, he was quite brilliant with machines.

"It's hopeless, I tell you!" he shouted, "I'll never get this confounded thing to work!" he said kicking his latest invention.

"You say that every time." Elle reminded him while holding back a smile,

"I mean it this time!" He shouted, fanning some of the smoke out the windows and door.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out, and then you'll win first place at the fair tomorrow." Elle said hugging him from behind, "And become a world famous inventor." She said smiling,

"Do you really believe that?" he asked her,

"I always have." She said with a laugh,

"You're right, Elle! Let's see if I can figure this out." He adjusted his goggles, laid down on his rolling table and slid under his machine, he called out, "Pass me that monkey wrench, would you please?" In a daze Elle walked over to the bench and passed the wrench to her father.

"Dad, do you think I'm odd?" She asked him, at that moment he rolled out from underneath the machine; his goggles making his eyes look big,

"My daughter? Odd? What makes you say that?" he asked her before rolling back under.

Elle stared at her book sadly, "I don't know, it's just...I don't really have anyone I can talk to." She admitted,

Her father started reaching for a screwdriver just outside his reach, "How about that Gordon fellow? He's quite a handsome fellow." He said, Elle reached down and pushed the screwdriver into his reach before pacing with annoyance, "He's handsome alright, but he's also rude, and selfish, and conceited, and...Dad, he's not my kind of guy." She sighed with aggravation,

Moe rolled out from underneath his machine, "Well, if you say so. I think I've managed to locate and fix the problem, let's try it out." he told her, and he turned the key to activate the machine.

It whirred to life, the engine hummed and rattled. The whole machine shook as it the engine clicked and spun.

"Quick, help me get it outside!" he shouted to Elle, the two of them grabbed the back and pushed the machine out of the shed and into the yard. Moe's invention finally saw the light of day, which was just what it needed. It was the first ever solar powered car!

The two of them watched in amazement as the car's engine steadied and resonated to a nice purr. Maurice jumped for joy and hopped in the front seat as his daughter stood close buy in case something went wrong. Moe drove around the block a couple times cheering in his wake.

"It works!" He cried,

Elle laughed with joy, "You did it! You did it!" she shouted,

"That's right Elle! I'm off to the fair!" he yelled, before slipping and landing on the horn. He managed to correct himself before he crashed. He quickly parked his car and ran over to hug his daughter.

The next day he left early in the morning, loading his bags into his car. He trusted Elle to take of herself and the house while he was gone.

"Goodbye Dad, and good luck, although I know you won't need it." Elle told her father while hugging him goodbye.

"Goodbye Elle, take care of yourself while I'm gone." He said,

"Don't worry, I will." She said, she wasn't going to be doing much while he was away. She was just going to be spending time at home taking time to enjoy reading her new book. The only other thing she had to look forward to was his nightly calls.

So Maurice got in the car and drove off, honking as he went. Elle couldn't help but smile at all the fun he was having. She couldn't wait to see his childish grin when he held up the first place trophy at the inventors fair. She wished she could be going with him, but the car was new, and they weren't sure how well it would do on its own, so they didn't want to push it. She would be fine with hearing about it and seeing photographs. Elle watched as he drove down the road and through the sunrise.

Many hours later, Maurice still hadn't arrived at the fair. He had most definitely gotten lost. He was sure that the path to the city didn't lead up into the mountains, but none the less he had ended up there anyway. He wished he had brought Elle with him, she was so much better than with directions. Even the Global Positioning System he had installed was no good.

When he came to a fork in the road, the GPS kept insisting that they go left, even though the map told him to go right. Maurice figured that if he turned right, he would be turning around, which is what he wanted to do. So he turned right even when the GPS told him he was going the wrong way.

Of course the GPS had been right, when he went right it lead him into some woods. The woods made it darker and harder to see, and the car's battery life was getting low. It was late, and he was getting tired. He might've shut his eyes longer than he thought, because before he knew it he was a little too close to the edge of the road. He slammed on the breaks, but it was too late. The car was now teetering off the edge of a cliff.

Maurice's instincts kicked in, and he thought quickly. As much as he hated it, he was going to have to abandon his car. He crawled out the back, not even bothering to grab his things, and as soon as he was out the car fell. Maurice started thinking of ways he could perhaps salvage the car. He thought about getting it towed. He opened his cell phone to call a service.

Just his luck, the place was closed, so he had to leave a message. What was even worse, his phone battery died as soon as he hung up. With his car out of commission there was no way he could charge it so he could call Elle and tell her what had happened. His luck went from bad to worse as he heard wolves howling off in the distance.

Maurice started to run. He didn't know where he was going but he knew he would need a head start if was going to get away from them. He ran as far from the wolves as he could, when he heard their howls he went in the opposite direction hoping to avoid them.

It was no use though; they caught up to him eventually. They could probably smell his fear. Fortunately, his luck came through at the last moment. Just when he needed to hide, he spotted a large home off in the distance. He ran towards, and when he made it to the gate he shook it desperately.

"Let me in! Let me in! Please, let me in-" he suddenly fell forward as the gate opened. He tried to crawl away, but then he noticed a wolf knowing on his foot. He used all of his force to push the wolf away and close the gate. Soon as he was sure the gate was closed, he rushed to get inside as the wolves ran off in the distance. Maurice ran up to the front door and knocked, only for the door to open on its own.

Maurice was a little confused, but he went inside. Now that he was away from the wolves and safe indoors he felt a sense of relief wash over him. He was safe at last. He felt a little guilt about barging into these people's home, but he was sure they wouldn't mind once he explained to them what had happened.

Maurice had no idea how wrong he could be.

 **A/N: That was a long one. Next one will be shorter, and it will also be Maurice's point of view. People who saw the movie can guess what will happen.**


	4. The Beast

The Beast

Maurice walked through the entry way and took in his new surroundings. Inside the door was a grand entrance room that was spacious with high ceilings and tall pillars. The house was dark and very empty. Perhaps the people living here are asleep, Maurice thought to himself, yet that didn't explain why the main entrance was so empty or why the door was unlocked. It was always a possibility that these people weren't used to having visitors being so high up in the mountains. There was always the case that the house was abandoned, but Maurice had to check to be sure.

"Hello?" he called out, his voiced echoed through the empty room. He rubbed his arms nervously, "Helloooo?" he called even louder, instantly he heard panicked whispers coming from somewhere nearby, although he couldn't tell where. He stepped back in alarm before composing himself.

"The fellow must have lost his way in the woods." One of the voices whispered,

"Just be quiet!" the other one whispered, "Maybe he'll go away."

Maurice wandered around the darkness following the sound of the voices; he walked by a table with a candelabra and a clock that he surprisingly didn't notice before. His head darted around trying to locate the source of the voices.

"Is someone there?" he called out nervously,

"Not a word Lumiere. Not. One. Word." The second voice added,

"I don't mean to intrude, but my car broke down," he assured them, hoping to ease the strangers' coldness towards him, "and I need a place to stay for the night."

"Aw, Cogsworth, have a heart." The first voice pleaded, he was met with a,

"Shh!" from the first voice, immediately followed by a, "Ow-ow-ow-ow!"

Then a much louder voice called out, "Of course, Monsieur, you are welcome here!" with a sense of panic Maurice reached for the candle, desperate to find the voices in the darkness. "Who said that?" he said urgently, looking around.

"Over here." The voice replied, and Maurice had the sinking feeling this voice belonged to a trickster who was trying to mess with him. He whipped himself around looking up and down for the voice. "Where?" he asked, then suddenly he felt a cold tap on his bald head, and he looked up. He looked straight at the candle he was holding, and suddenly he saw something shocking. The candle had a face!

"Hello." Said the candle flatly, Maurice dropped the candle with shock and the candelabra hit the ground with a clink and an "umf." All of the candle's flames went out, while Maurice stared at the candle with shock. He leaned down to get a closer look at the candle, "Incredible." He stated, staring at the candle with curiosity. Suddenly, the clock jumped down off of the table and onto the ground next to the candle and started chewing him out.

"Well now you've done it Lumiere! Splendid! Just Peachy!" he said crossing his arms indignantly, Maurice reached down and picked up the little clock, and started to examine it. The Clock shrieked,

"How is this accomplished?" Maurice asked rhetorically,

"Put me down at once!" the clock shouted, Maurice started rubbing the clocks wooden feet with his forefinger, which caused the clock to start giggling, then he held it upside down and shook him causing the candle to chuckle, and then he flipped him on his front and started turning the crank to the hands on his face, causing the clock a great deal of pain. Then he turned him around again and opened the door to his pendulum case, and started prodding around inside. At this point the clock decided he had had enough and firmly shut the door on Moe's finger.

"Sir, close that at once! Do you mind!?" he said with frustration.

Maurice shook the pain out of his finger and stammered an apology.

"I-I-I beg your pardon, it's just that I've never seen a-a-a-a" suddenly he felt a sneeze coming on, as his face scrunched up, he tried to stop himself but it was too late, and he let out a wet, misty sneeze onto the living clock he was holding. The clock wiped the mist away with his face hands while becoming very irritable.

The candle, Lumiere was his name, looked at Maurice with warmth and sincerity.

"Oh, you are soaked to the bone Monsieur. Come, warm yourself by the fire." He said hopping off towards the next room that had a warm light coming from it.

"Thank you." Maurice sniffled, honoured by the candle's kindness towards him.

The clock chased after them in frustration, "No. No. No! You know what the master will say about this!" he warned them,

Maurice wasn't fully paying attention; he was too enthralled by the idea of sitting by the warm fire. He heard that the house belonged to someone, but surely he wouldn't mind helping him out if the house itself was indeed being so very welcoming. "I demand you stop right this instant!" the clock ordered as they entered the next room. Cogs and gears fell from the clock as he was knocked to the ground as he entered the room but he seemed to be unaffected by it. He got right back up and continued to complain.

"No, no, not the master's chair!" he whined, as Lumiere gestured for Maurice to sit down. Suddenly, a yipping noise was heard and a foot stool ran over to Maurice.

"I'm not seeing this, I'm not seeing this!" the clock screamed,

"Why, hello there boy." Maurice said petting the stool, and as soon as the stool was satisfied it went under the man's feet. Then the coat rack came by and wrapped a blanket around him while Moe laughed happily. "What service." He commented, as the coat rack tipped his hat to the man.

"This has gone far enough! I'm in charge here, and I say-!" the clock started to shout, right before being run over by a tea cart. The tea cart pulled right up to Moe and the Tea pot spoke to him with the voice of a kind old woman.

"How would you like a spot of tea, sir? It will warm you up in no time." She told him, the clock spoke from being face down on the floor,

"No tea! No Tea!" he shouted, waving his finger.

Maurice took a sip from his cup and the tea cup giggled, "His mustache tickled momma." Said the cup in a high pitched voice, and Maurice laughed. He couldn't believe the utter bewilderment of it all. It was like he stumbled into a wonderland. He couldn't believe his luck of finding a house that was so nice and friendly and whimsical.

"Why, hello!" he said to the tea cup, and suddenly the door to the room slammed open. The sound was so loud and the force was so great that it caused Moe to drop his cup. Suddenly the wind blew out the fire and made the room dark. All the objects gasped, shivered and shaked, and the cup jumped to hide behind it's mother. "Uh...oh..." the cup muttered.

Moe shivered with fear and hid in his chair. A shadow passed over the room, a large furry creature with large horns. It walked into the room on all fours,

"There's a stranger here." The monster growled,

Lumiere started talking very quickly in his nervousness, "You see, master. Let me explain this man was lost in the woods, he was cold and wet, so I thought..." the master roared loudly causing his flames to go out. The clock came out from where he was hiding from under the rug.

"Um, master, I would just like to take this moment to say..." he started nervously, before he started speaking very quickly, "I was against this from the start. It was all his fault, I tried to stop him, but did they listen to me "no, no, ne-" the master roared again to stop him from talking, his eyes went wide with terror and he went back to hiding under the rug.

Maurice poked his head over both sides of the chair to try and see the monster that had entered, and the second time he looked, he saw the outline of the shadowy figure next to his chair. His bright eyes were glaring at him. Maurice's eyes went wide with terror and he leaned away from the beast.

"Who are you?! What are you doing here?!" the monster asked angrily, climbing over the chair and puching Maurice backward towards the door.

Maurice fumbled with his words, being too afraid to think properly,

"I-I-I was lost in the woods, and" he said looking towards the door hoping if he could run if given the chance,

"You are not WELCOME HERE!" the beast growled loudly,

"I-I-I'm sorry," he stuttered out not leaving the monster's gaze.

"What are you STARING AT!?" the monster asked angrily, standing up to full height.

"Nothing!" Maurice replied with panic. As the monster came closer,

"So...You've come to stare at the beast!" Maurice turned and ran at this outburst, but the beast was too quick and stopped him before he could get to the door.

"Have you?!" he asked angrily,

"Please!" the old man begged, "I meant no harm, I just needed a place to stay!" he pleaded. The entire time he talked the beast's growling grew louder, his glare deepened, and he slinked closer. Upon hearing the old man's pleas he stood up to full height, "I'll give you a place to stay!" he said angrily, and he grabbed the old man by the coat.

"No! No, please! No, no!" Maurice shouted, as the monster slammed the door leaving the servants inside.

The monster trudged through the large house until he made it to the kitchen. He went to the very back and opened the door to the cellar and threw him inside. It was the closest thing to a prison the beast could think of. It served the man right. He should be arrested for trespassing, but since he couldn't go to the police; this would have to be the second best option. This way, the man could pay for his crimes against his house, and he would never have to see his face again. More importantly, he wouldn't have to see the man look at his face again.


	5. Elle

Elle

Elle wasn't expecting much to happen that Saturday. She planned to wake up, make herself some breakfast, then get dressed before doing the chores. After she was done the chores she would make herself some lunch and do some more chores in between reading her book. That night, she was planning on making herself some supper, before changing into her pyjamas and watching her father at the inventors fair on TV with maybe some cocoa and popcorn. After the fair was no longer being aired she would rinse her dishes before sitting by the fire with a blanket and her book. She would most probably read it until she fell asleep if she didn't go to bed before then.

The only unexpected thing that might happen was she might get a call from her father. He had failed to call her last night when he arrived at the fair. Elle hadn't held that against him, he might have been tired, or too excited from being there to bother to remember. She didn't mind the extra time it gave her to read, and she didn't want to bother him during his pitch, but if he didn't call her at all that day she might end up calling him.

The point is, she predicted every moment in her day. She didn't expect anything big to happen, and she expected a nice quiet day at home to read. Any minor thing probably wouldn't throw her off too much. She didn't however, see this coming, and it certainly threw her off.

* * *

Gordan, on the other hand, had big plans for that Saturday. Gordan had a plan, and that plan resulted in him getting a girlfriend; A very pretty girlfriend who happened to like reading and be named Elle. He was sure, without a doubt that his plan would work.

That Saturday, Gordan pulled together all of his friends and resources and planned a party. Being an all-star with a wealthy father certainly helped in the way of throwing parties. It didn't take much work to get the party set up and packed with people. It had everything a party would need; loud party music, junk food, couches for, uh...quality time, tables to set drinks on, a keg with ice, flashing party lights, and of course, lots of people for mingling and dancing and to make the place full of life.

Once the party was finished he had completed setting up stage one of his plan. Now it was time for stage two, invite Elle to go with him to that party, (neglecting to tell her it was his until they got there), and once they were out on their date, he'd ask her to be his girlfriend.

Of course she would say yes. She had just avoided him before because she was shy. She wanted him to make the first move, all girls did, and it was just that others constantly reminded him to make the first move. Every girl in school was interested in him and took their time to tell him that they were available if he wanted to ask them out. Elle didn't do that. He liked that about her.

Sure, all the other girls were hot, and he would like it if they showed him off to their friends to make them jealous, but he couldn't date just anyone! That would make him look bad! He was supposed to be hard to get! He couldn't just be a hottie for hire! Elle would understand that, it was something they had in common.

Elle wouldn't be like the other girlfriends. She would be quiet, and supportive. She would always be there for him whenever he needed her, like if he needed someone pretty to show off to his friends, or someone to wash his uniform when he was busy entertaining his friends and fans (come to think of it, all of his friends were his fans). Everyone loved him. She would also be someone to give him massages when he was having a bad day, or if his feet were sore from a game, and she would never complain about the smell! Elle was just too nice!

He could probably help her out too by getting her head out of the books and more interested in his sports team and other things girls liked. He knew she would like them if her father raised her right, but that wasn't his fault either. No one can be guilty of being crazy.

If all else failed, he'd tell her the party was for her. It technically was, and that would definitely win her over. It was at least worth a try.

He turned off the music and took the microphone.

"I would like to thank you all for coming to my party," he told them,

"Now I just have to go and invite my date." He said chuckling, and everyone else laughed, and a few of the popular girls cried for not being chosen as his date, but they'd get over it.

"I'll be back soon," he told them all, "Don't mourn my absence, I'm sure it won't take long to get her over here." Then he turned the music back on, and headed out to his car, making sure to grab Lou on his way out the door.

"Dude!" he shouted with aggravation, "I was the middle of scoring a date with one of the popular girls! Your rejection is making them date pretty much anyone! Thanks a lot, man!" Gordan wasn't sure if the last part was sincere, or sarcastic, but he gave him a glare he had used against some math nerds before shoving them into a locker (if Gordan remembered correctly, Lou had once been one of the nerds he bullied, even after he joined the basketball team) and it shut him up quick.

"Just drive," he told him shoving him into the driver's seat as got into the shotgun position, "You remember where she lives, right?" he asked him. Lou nodded nervously and pulled out of the driveway.

Once they got to Elle's house Gordan got out of the car, and before he shut the door he turned to Lou,

"Elle's going to be so surprised!" Lou said excitedly,

"Yeah, well, this is her lucky day!" Gordan said grinning,

"Now, when me and Elle come out that door,-" he started to remind Lou,

"Yeah, I know, I blast the stereos!" he said half-annoyed, half excited. Gordan had a very nice car, with nice stereos that included speakers in the back for the surround sound experience. Lou turned on the radio and cranked it so loud hip-hop music could be heard for miles around, before Gordan quickly shut it off and punched him in the face.

"Not yet, you moron!" he hissed angrily,

"Sor-ry." Lou said with irritation, he knew the plan already, and he didn't understand why Gordan was so antsy. He would probably ace whatever he was going to do; he didn't need to get so angry about it. He slammed the door on the car and went to ring the doorbell.

* * *

Elle, however, already knew he was there. She was by the front window reading her book, and she was getting to her favourite part, and she heard a car pull into the driveway. She thought at first that it might be her father home from the fair early, but as soon as she heard the radio she knew otherwise. She went to the window and peaked out the curtain to see Gordan and Lou arguing in her driveway.

She groaned. So much for her quiet Saturday, now that Gordan was there things were bound to get loud. She contemplated hiding in her room, but she feared him breaking in to come and find her. It wasn't like she would be anywhere else. She bet that he wouldn't go away until she told him to. He was dense like that, probably too many hits to the head, or his sport ego making him determined and stubborn. She had no idea what he wanted, but she hoped he would leave soon.

So when the door rang, she went to the door to open it. She unlocked it, and then hesitated. She realised that Gordan would be coming into her house, and she didn't want that, but she didn't want to be alone outside with him either. It was no mystery that he liked her, but she thought she had given off a very strong impression that she wanted nothing to do with him. Still, she didn't want to be alone with the guy. They had never been alone before, and she didn't know what he would do if he got the wrong ideas.

Of course, Gordan never gave her that option. As soon as he heard her feet on the other side of the door and heard the lock unlatch, he let himself in.

"Gordan!" she said, "What a...pleasant...surprise." she said slowly finding the words,

"Isn't it though? I'm just full of surprises." He told striding forward,

"You know, there isn't a girl in town who wouldn't want to be in your shoes. This is the day..." he started to say, before stopping to check his teeth in the hall mirror, once he was done he continued, "This is the your dreams come true!"

"What do you know about my dreams, Gordan?" Elle smirked, humoring him,

"Plenty!" he said happily, before flopping into her chair leaning back and putting his muddy shoes on her book. "Picture this," he said kicking off his shoes as Elle grimaced,

A cozy rec room in the basement, a home theater system, music system blaring, my trophies gleaming on a shelf nearby, munching on a buttery bowl of popcorn, while my smoking hot girlfriend rubs my feet. Then we'd make out to the sound track of a movie in the back ground, we'd do it a few times a week." He told her,

"What watch a movie?" she asked innocently, already knowing she was wrong,

"Oh, Elle, you are very naive." Gordan laughed and removed his feet causing Elle to snatch her book and remove the mud from it, "Do you know who that smoking hot girlfriend would be?" he asked following her towards the book shelf, she quickened her pace with panic.

"Gee, let me think?" she said nervously,

"You, Elle!" he told her, (he was excited, so he skipped ahead in his plan),

"Wow, Gordan, I'm... speechless!" she said moving away from him back towards the door, shoving a dining chair in her path to slow his pursuit, he simply pushed it out of the way, "I don't know what to say." She said feigning amazement. He made it over to her and trapped her against the door.

"Say you'll be my girlfriend," he said happily, and a little too close to Elle's face to her liking.

"Well, Gordan, I'm really flattered but..." she said desperately reaching for the doorknob as Gordan leaned in to kiss her, finally she reached the handle and turned the knob. "I simply don't deserve you!" she shouted, and Gordan, who had been leaning on the door, fell outwards and onto her front lawn. Elle slammed the door as Lou blasted the stereo in the car, a second later Elle opened the door to throw his shoes out before slamming it shut again, and she made sure to lock it in case Gordan got any more ideas.

Lou noticed that Elle was nowhere around, so he turned off the stereo and got out of the car moving over to where Gordan was lying on the wet grass. Lou leaned over to get a good look at him as Gordan wiped the mud off of his face,

"So, how'd it go?" Lou asked him, Gordan looked up in a rage, grabbed Lou by the collar and pulled him towards him, "I will have Elle as my girlfriend! One way, or another I will!" he shouted angrily. He shoved Lou in the mud, got up, and got in his car before driving away. Lou snorted with irritation, "Touch-y" he said mockingly.

* * *

Elle stared out the window watching the expensive car pull out of the driveway, and didn't leave the frame until Lou had finally finished chasing the car down the street. Elle let out a sigh of relief. He was finally gone! Then she let out a frustrated grunt of anger! She couldn't believe Gordan! He would not take no for an answer, and the way he forced himself onto her like that, it was absolutely deplorable!

The fact that Gordan had wanted her to be his girlfriend! The idea was horrifying! She thought Gordan knew better. The last thing she wanted was to be his girlfriend. She could already tell he was one of those domineering types that would tell her what to do all the time, and simply have her around to do his homework and chores and have her around as eye candy!

She didn't want to be his girlfriend. If she became his girlfriend, she knew she'd never leave this town. She so badly wanted to leave. She didn't fit in with the townspeople, the only person who liked her was her father and Gordan, and the latter was for the wrong reasons.

With frustration she tried to read her book, but she couldn't focus since she was still fuming at what Gordan had done. So instead, she took the remote and turned on the TV. She needed something to get her mind off of her troubles. She hoped the inventors fair would be on and she could see her father, but no such luck. Instead she flipped to the news with the hopes of hearing more about the world outside of her little town. The news she heard was closer to her town than she realized.

Playing on the news was the signs of wreckage that had appeared to have been caused to a car falling off of a cliff. They pulled the car up by a crane and it was revealed that it was her father's car. She let out a gasp of horror. They revealed that no bodies were found at the scene, but other than that, that was it. What, did they expect that the person vanished?! Her father was out there; stranded in the woods, and no one was doing anything about it!

She decided that she would have to be the one to go after him. She couldn't stand it if anything happened to him; he was the only person who she loved.

 **A/N: That was a fun chapter to write. Next time will also be Elle's point of view, and it will talk about how she found the mansion and her father.**


End file.
